Ankyra Sound i'm gonna buckle my knees, and i'm gonna lock them up tight

@Arrille

ingram had managed to pull every bough of bramble into the grotto; it sat in a pile not far from the entrance, almost barricading any further progress. his initial plan to line the narrow path along the cliff with the bramble was hare-brained at best, and he was left deciding what to do with the small clusterfuck he had created. he was sure lycaon and caiaphas would not approve of the new decor, but he hadn't seen either in a few days.

"oi arrille!" he shouted down the cavern, wincing as his echo came back twice as vehement.

Arrille waited by the pool, dipping his paw in it. He would sometimes lie there by the pool, watching his reflection. His thoughts drifting to his doppleganger. And how he had met him at Blackfeather. Seeing him again, they seemed so much the same. 

But he did hear a call for him, and he got up to find Ingram had called him. "Yes, Ingram?" he asked, his expression a little dull.

ingram craned his neck to the side absurdly as he strained to hear an answer over his engulfing echoes: one came, much less potent -- and from the sound of it, it originated in the cavern.

ingram pushed aside the bramble and trotted down the tunnel, dipping his head as he came into the expanse that marked the cavern's entrance. every time he entered the enclave, he was reminded of the strangeness of it -- he could enter it a thousand more times and still be taken aback by the eerie glow their subterranean rendezvous was housed in.

he noticed arrille looked a little dull; his impish expression fell as he padded over to him. "i was gonna say, i dunno what to do with those plants. what's wrong?"

"What plants?" he asked. Then he turned his face slightly away, going by Ingram. "Nothing is wrong...now, what about these plants you mentioned?" he asked again. He stopped by the entrance, seeing what Ingram had been talking about. He was confused as to why they were there, and gave Ingam a look that asked for an answer.

ingram followed hot on arrille's heels, suspicion riddling his countenance. he knew a sour expression when he saw one (was lycaon not the master of such a sullen trade?) and it perplexed him to see arrille brush off his query so quickly. as they came upon the plants ingram smiled sheepishly. "you know, from the cliffs earlier. i couldnt get them all up there. some are up higher and i secured them with rock." he looked at the mass of bramble, unwilling to touch it further -- the thorns had chapped his paws raw and he wanted nothing more to do with them.

"hey," he insisted, pursuing the topic arrille had elected to avoid: "what's up?"

He recalled the cliffs incident, and how much he had worried the hell out of Arrille. "You were getting that? Why?" he asked, glancing to the bushes. Why would anyone even want to move that? It looked like it would make one quite painful just touching them. 

He tried to shrug off the question, but he knew that Ingram was not going to let go, ever persistent. Almost as much as Arrille himself. "Ingram, please...it's not something I want to talk about."

ingram looked again to the briars, and then to arrille. "for protection!"  he exclaimed, trying to step around the brambles he had left carelessly in the den. "dunno if we'll need them, better if we don't, but better if we do and they're there. right?" he winked as he managed to jostle past one of the briars that obstructed most of the entrance of the grotto. sunlight came in bright shafts and he stepped into the outer rim of the world, breathing deep of the sound and the brine.

"fine, if you don't wanna talk about it i guess we'll talk about me instead." ingram stated, a scallawag grin on his features as he turned to face arrille. he would respect arrille's wishes if he declined to share his thoughts, but it did not mean he would forget something was troubling him.

Arrille looked at Ingram, then the plants...then back to Ingram. "I...guess it works?" he said, unsure about it. He definitely knew that they would provide a very big hassle to anyone who did try to get through to the Grotto, and would not be fun to try to get by. Too many pointy things.

He shrugged. "All right, go ahead" he said back to him. As long as he didn't need to talk, he'd let Ingram talk aboout himself all he wanted.

ingram really needed no excuse to talk about himself; like any of the luscyon brood, he had a very healthy sense of self. however, it just wasn't the same when his audience was glum; ingram closed his mouth and pursed his lips in a thin expression of disapproval.

"i have an idea." he announced gravely, adopting a smooth trot as he headed towards the rocky shore. if arrille followed he would keep his pace an easy lope: if arrille declined his request ingram would continue on all the same, dedicated to the task of cheering up his melancholy friend.

whether or not arrille came was meaningless in this particular moment: ingram sussed out a smooth, beachworn stone from the tide and held it to the sky; it was circular, glistening, and perfect for his purpose. he then would go back to arrille (where-ever arrille happened to be) and present the stone to him with his tail wagging softly.

Arrille did not see Ingram's expression, as he paid more attention to the bushes moved before them. "What's the idea?" he asked, still eyeing the plants. He got up to follow Ingram to the shore, stopping as Ingram went about the rocks and then came back with something. Something that looked rather odd.

It brought his mind back to how Seri had attempted to cheer him up, or whatever she had been doing when trying to find a bone. "What...what is that?"

ingram proffered the round stone to arrille, pushing it across the sand with his nose. when he lifted his snout, a powdering of sand still stuck to his damp muzzle. he offered arrille a grin and his brows rose as he looked from the pebble to his friend.

"ok - this is a thing my mum told me my dad used to do." he instructed, nosing the pebble once more for arrille to pick up. "think for a moment about what's troubling you, and hold that stone tight in your mouth like, okay? and then, follow me --" he turned, picked up his own sea-warped pebble, and trotted towards the beach. he scrambled onto one of the ancient rock stacks that punctured the water and waited for arrille to climb alongside him. once arrille did ingram took two bold steps towards the edge of the rocky outcropping and swung his muzzle back and tossed the stone as far as his jaws could manage.

he watched noncommittally as the stone plunked along the sea surface, caused a froth of foam around it, and sunk forever out of sight. "drowning your troubles in the sea. that there's what's bothering you and now it's at the bottom of the ocean. healthy, right?"

Arrille could only wear a look of confusion. He was beginning to question Ingram's sanity at this point. Yet he still followed, picking up the one for him as he did. When Ingram got toward the outcropping above the seas, he got that same worry he had when Ingram had been on the cliff. Less so, since the fall didn't seem as high. Plus, because he was beginning to think Ingram was insane to do so.

He could then only just watched as he tossed the rock. He only had one thing to say, around the rock. "This is stupid..." he muttered, but he still did it. He thought about his troubles, and then tossed it out. He had to admit, to never see that rock again did make him feel a little better, to throw something...He went to pick up another rock and then threw that. And then another...and another, picking up the pace as he did.

ingram caught arrille's mutter, but he only grinned in rejoinder. he watched as the rock was flung; and watched as it sank beneath the seafoam flecked waves. arrille bent and picked up another -- and another -- ingram beamed and joined him, his needle nose flinging with careless abandon all manner of rocks and shells he could find.

while only a metaphor for their troubles, it eased his mind to set a task for himself; the physical exercise cleared his mind of crippling thoughts, and being outside on a stormbattered beach with a friend only served to further heighten his spirits. elated that arrille had picked on (albeit reluctantly) ingram smiled between pants and eventually collapsed to the rocky sand with a joyful roll. "i feel better. do you feel better?"

Arrille panted as he came to a slow stop, still holding one in his mouth that he just ended up dropping at his forepaws. "Y...Yes" he answered, even though it had tired him out a bit. "It's nice...to throw something..." Everything that had happened recently had been on his mind, he had no idea what to feel.

ingram nodded. it was nice to throw things: tantrums, rocks, the leg of a deer at your rude ass sister during supper -- he could get behind tossing anything, as long as it had a big enough impact aftermath.

his back to the sand, ingram contorted his body to and fro, digging into the wet surface as he went.  he flipped onto his side and regarded arrille - this time, arrille's expression was not so clouded. ingram considered it a job well done and he cast his gaze down the cheerless beach. "we could throw more things if you want. or chase gulls." an impish gleam appeared in his eyes and he looked to the grey skies for any signs of his next victims.

Arrille shook his head. He had another idea as he headed off from the rocks and to the sand instead. There he stood, beckoning Ingram over. Once Ingram was close enough, Arrille grew a grin that would be quite obvious to see, before he tried to attempt a pounce on the wolf. He felt like sparring to get his nerves calm down.

ingram shifted onto his elbows, giving his partner the hairy eyeball as he walked away. all the same, he acquiesced the request. with a groan he slid up on all fours, shook off the mass of sand his long fur had accumulated, and trotted on gangly limbs after his comrade.

ingram did not miss the devilish grin arrille sported as he turned around; suspiciously he slowed to a stop, standing on all fours warily. it appeared his suspicions were well founded, for arrille rallied on his heels and pounced; ingram threw a playbow excitedly towards his comrade as arrille fell upon him.

he was not the greatest spar partner, but he would try -- with a playful growl he dropped his shoulder and pulled away from arrille, shielding himself from any further 'onslaughts' by attempting to batter arrille with his haunches.

Arrille dropped to the ground as Ingram pulled away, and then he got into his own playbow as he prepared to run at him to pounce once more, in an attempt to bring Ingram down. As he ran, he laughed like he had not done before, for he planned to have plenty of fun in this spar of theirs.

ingram's feint only half-worked; arrille was on the ground, and before he knew it, was on top of him again. the force caused ingram to stagger and his haunches hit the sand from the blow. unkeeled by arrille's counter ingram started to his feet, propped himself up and bowled towards his friend with his teeth snapping playfully at arrille's front limbs. he did not see to hurt or bite, but to worry him enough that he would lift his legs away so ingram could shoulder him.

The boy managed to pounce against Ingram again, staggering him again. He backed up momentarily to prepare for another attack as he watched Ingram make his own move. Arrille watched as Ingram came his way, and he lifted his legs back as the other wolf came at him, the action indeed worrying him.

ingram delivered little snaps to the front of arrille's nearest leg, though he took care not to actually bite him. his shouldering jostle connected only weakly and had no affect - with a grunt he tried to swing his haunches into arrille once more, waiting for whatever counter the tall boy would issue.

in truth, ingram was likely no match for arrille in true combat: pound for pound, arrille was taller and bigger -- and ingram only knew how to fight unfairly, not how to fight well.

As Ingram tried to swing his haunches toward Arrille, while he still had his forelegs up Arrille made an attempt to make a grab at his opponent's scruff, leaning over Ingram's haunches to make the grab. Then he would try to throw his weight to one side, aiming to bring Ingram down with him.

whoops - ingram knew soon as arrille connected to his scruff that he was a doomed man -- comically, ingram struck out his front paws in a flourish and with a dramatic "oOOP!" he crashed to the ground, sending a small wave of sand out from underneath them. he rolled wildly, still on his stomach as he feinted a quick bite towards whatever one of arrille's legs was closest. "frick, you got me." he admitted, though there was no defensiveness or bitterness in his tone or his smile.

Arrille held Ingram's scruff as he held him down to the ground, pushing his weight down on him to keep him down. He flinched his paw back at the feinted bite. "Yes...yes I did" he said back with a large grin. It wasn't long till he realized the position they were in, holding Ingram down from behind. He didn't know what the position was, but he knew it felt wrong, giving him an expression of embarassment. "You had it coming, anyway...I did tell you I'd kick your butt."

ingram was unaware there was anything illicit about the position they were in -- for as far as he knew, arrille was simply holding him in place on the ground so he was fully aware of his defeat. he shook his head with an indifferent wriggle, chasing the sand out of his ears with a few rotations of his narrow skull. "so you did, eh." he admitted wrly, shifting his hocks under him slowly and sneakily.

if arrille hadn't caught it by now, ingram would leap forward, tossing sand towards him with a swipe of one paw (sand that was not destined to go very far) -- followed by him giggling as he launched into a headlong gallop down the beach.